Tyson Fury warned Oleksandr Usyk rematch plan will end in another defeat

Tyson Fury will be looking to avenge his defeat to the Ukrainian star when the pair go glove-to-glove for a second time in Riyadh on December 21

Tyson Fury ahead of his rematch with Oleksandr Usyk

British boxing legend Duke McKenzie believes Tyson Fury plan to pile on the pounds for his rematch with Oleksandr Usyk will only play into the Ukrainian’s hands.

‘The Gypsy King’ is entering the final stages of his training camp for the sequel as he bids to level the series against the Ukrainian. Fury suffered the first defeat of his professional career to Usyk back in May, losing via split decision in Riyadh. The two heavyweight stars will once again go head-to-head in the squared-circle on December 21.

Last month, the Brit revealed he will be looking to secure a knockout win in December. Speaking in an interview ahead of the console release of the boxing video game ‘Undisputed’, when asked what tactic he preferred out of staying on the outside or stepping into a fighter, Fury answered: “I don’t know. It’s horses for courses isn’t it? It all depends on what I need to do on the night.

“I needed to get Wilder out of there or he got me out of there and that’s the type of fight it had to be. It had to be a 50/50 gunsling with the biggest puncher in history or else he’d have chinned me in round nine. Going into the rematch with Usyk, it’s going to be the same. I’m going to roll the dice and it’s going to be you or me… best foot forward and swing away. I’ve never been afraid to get knocked spark out. I’ve always put it on the line every time.”

He added: “There’s no secret! I’m going in there to knock you out because I don’t think I’m going to get a decision no matter what I do. I don’t think I’m going to get a boxing decision, so I’m going to have to take it out of the judges hands like I did in America that time and I’ve got to get him (Usyk) out of there. Hand on heart, I have to get him out of there to see victory.”

Ahead of the blockbuster rematch, recent pictures would suggest that Fury is gaining a little bit of extra weight as he looks to secure a finish next month. The two-time heavyweight world champion weighed 262lb for his clash – over 30lb more than his opponent. Despite giving himself a 10/10 rating for his first outing with the Ukrainian, the Brit insisted that it wasn’t the ‘real Gypsy King’.

In a post uploaded to his Instagram story last month, Fury uploaded a picture of his physique before his defeat in May, captioning it: “Was in the shape of my life, but this is not the GK [Gypsy King].” In a second image, uploaded alongside it was a snapshot from his second showdown with Deontay Wilder – with Fury writing: “This is him, 19st 11lbs, bruiser.”

Despite revealing plans to pile on the weight, McKenzie – Britain’s first three-weight world champion – has warned Fury that his game plan for the rematch won’t work. Speaking on talkSPORT’s talkBOXING podcast, he said: “He [Fury] doesn’t live, eat, walk, talk the sport but you’re supposed to. In-between fights is where fights are won and lost. We know Fury blows up, puts on a load of weight between fights and then he has got to get rid of all that weight again. Now, they’re trying to tell us that Fury is going to be bigger and better.

“Bigger and better isn’t going to beat Usyk. It’s really not. If he puts on more weight and thinks to himself ‘I’m going to bully Usyk this time, I’m going to go in and walk him down, I’ll be able to take his shots because I’m that much bigger’, it’s not going to work for him. He’s going to be slower, he’s going to be more predictable, he’s going to get hit more and a lot sooner.

“Usyk wins the rematch all day long, I can’t see how Tyson Fury beats him. He’s not going to knock Usyk out. This guy is unbeaten, so you have to look for chinks in his armour. Has this guy got a bad engine? Does he get cut? Does he go down? Does he have to get up off the floor to win fights? Usyk doesn’t have to do any of them, he’s never shown a vulnerability.”